Britain’s Department for International Development has set aside GBP165 million (Sh21 billion) for the Cities and Infrastructure for Growth programme, a five-year initiative aimed at boosting inclusive economic growth and job creation first in Zambia, Uganda and Burma before later expanding to Mozambique, Malawi, Kenya, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Nepal and Pakistan.
The project is being delivered by a consortium led by IPE Global Private of India, Aecom and Coffey International Development, alongside PriceWaterHouseCoopers, Cardno Emerging Markets, Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit, IMC Worldwide and the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development. The funding is meant to support regional interventions and infrastructure, including water and energy networks.
But a separate commentary in the material argues that the contractor mix has repeatedly pushed Kenyan consultants to the margins. It claims that local experts who help package bids are often sidelined once contracts are won, with foreign staff from Europe and India stepping into lead roles, and says several of the firms have reduced their Kenyan headcounts in recent years.
The same material singles out Coffey, alleging that Kenyan staff may be hired into finance or administration while foreign colleagues retain greater control over money and are paid more. It also accuses GIZ of favouring firms it already knows when awarding tenders, rather than opening the door to new bidders.
On Aecom, the source material quotes the company’s chief executive in a 2016 interview with an online construction magazine saying: “My main aim is to position AECOM as being able to plug any infrastructure gap that may exist, given our breadth of global experience and expertise. Our next step is to secure a range of major projects so as to give us the necessary critical mass to be cost-competitive in East Africa.” It also says he had forged a close working relationship with the Kenyan government.
The commentary further points to IPE Global’s work on the IGAD Regional Infrastructure Master Plan, funded by the African Development Bank, saying the study missed its September 2019 deadline after some consultants exited and was pushed to June 2020. It also says PwC’s role on the Sustainable Urban Economic Development Programme was mishandled before Coffey took over the project.
It then revisits Adam Smith International, saying DFID barred the firm for a time after a scandal before reinstating it in 2018. It cites Aisha Dowell, a campaigner at Global Justice, who said: “The recent review into the company should be a wake-up call to DfID to stop spending important aid money on expensive UK-based consultants, and to start using it to help developing countries build appropriate public services. That’s the path out of poverty for millions of people.”
The material adds that some former Adam Smith International staff later moved into other firms now involved in the Cities and Infrastructure for Growth project, and questions whether the programme can deliver on its promise if the same firms keep appearing across DFID-backed assignments. The source material did not include responses from DFID or the named companies.